One of the most famous bears in the U.S. has gone missing – and authorities have launched a statewide search to find him.
Smokey Bear – actually, a wooden replica of the famed bear that used to sit atop a fire danger sign off U.S. Route 50 near Lake Tahoe – vanished late last week, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. “I know some people in Tahoe are over the bears raiding their cabins, but this is unacceptable,” the agency writes on X.
Now the U.S. Forest Service has stepped in to help find the famed spokesbear, writing on Facebook, “Help us bring Smokey Bear home.” Officials with the agency are asking anyone with information about Smokey’s whereabouts to give them a call.